Miami, Wednesday, May, 27th (Negocios Magazine). After-School All-Stars (ASAS) announced last May 20th that the Mazda Foundation (USA), Inc. is supporting student-led service projects that bring greater awareness to the dangers of distracted driving.
In partnership with the Mazda Foundation and Project Yellow Light, ASAS South Florida Youth Advisory Board Member Victoria Torres and her peers are unveiling a prototype device aimed at curbing texting while driving at their end-of-year Parent Engagement Night. The “iHold,” as the students have coined the device, is a special phone case that clips onto the interior of a car door and makes an obnoxious noise when the driver attempts to remove the phone from the case. Students will be distributing the devices to their parents at the event.
Approximately 100 students, parents and community members were attended in the event, including representatives from Florida International University. The event was in the West Miami Middle School, located in 7525 Coral Way, Miami, FL.
The professional race car driver Tristan Nunez was present in the event, who has actively been touring the country speaking against distracted driving for several years and SpeedSource racing team member Chris Garcia. As a contract driver for Mazda, Nunez competes with the Mazda Prototype team in North America’s highest level of sports car racing, the TUDOR United SportsCar Series.
In addition to being the youngest driver to win a professional-level sports car race, he became the youngest-ever champion when he won the 2012 IMSA Prototypes Lites championship. Garcia has been with the SpeedSource racing team since 2013, where he directs driver changes during pit stops at No. 07 Mazda Prototype car races, and coordinates logistics for transporting multi-million dollar race teams to major events across North America. Garcia was an automotive technician before joining the team, and is also involved in a new form of motorsports called drifting.
Nunez and Garcia talked about their careers, share safe driving tips and industry insights, and help contextualize the role that technology can play to solve community concerns.
“We love how Victoria and her peers have embraced a technology-driven solution to combat the issue of texting when driving. Distracted driving is a serious community concern, and these creative efforts are putting real solutions in their parents’ hands,” said Tamara Mlynarczyk, Manager, Public Affairs, Mazda North American Operations. “The Mazda Foundation is proud to support creative, entrepreneurial students like Victoria who are leading these important efforts.”
Source: Mazda North American Operations.
Photos: Said Bazze for Negocios Magazine.
Compartir
